This invention relates to machines for manufacturing cardboard boxes and, more specifically, relates to a double box glue and tape machine with separable conveyors, semi-automatic alignment and feed system, and glue flushing system.
In recent years, a need has developed for very large boxes, such as those used to secure a pallet stacked with a quantity of smaller boxes. Double box glue and tape machines have been constructed to manufacture these large boxes by gluing and/or taping together two smaller boxes. To date, however, these machines have proved to be difficult to operate primarily due to the large size and unwieldy nature of the double box blanks that have to be fed into the machine.
More specifically, correctly manufacturing a double box requires proper alignment of the two box blanks before they are fed into the glue and tape machine. Typically, an operator physically aligns the blanks at the input of the machine and then pushes the aligned blanks into the machine, which then propels the blanks through the machine as it applies glue and tape to the seams. But due to the large size of the blanks, obtaining proper alignment is generally difficult and time consuming. This difficulty slows the manufacturing process and increases the number of waste boxes resulting from poor alignment of the box blanks. In addition, many operators of double box machines that are not typically used in very high volume operations cannot justify the high cost of fully automatic alignment and feed systems. For this reason, many operators choose to put up with the inefficiency of a manual alignment system rather than investing in a fully automatic alignment and feed system.
Further, conventional double box glue and tape machines suffer from other drawbacks, such as the inability to glue and tape overlying seams, which may prevent the machine from sealing both seams of a square double box in a single pass. In addition, conventional double box glue and tape machines lack other desirable features that could contribute to increased efficiency, such as a flushing system for the cold glue head.
Therefore, a need exists for a double box glue and tape machine that can simultaneously seal overlying seams for manufacturing square double boxes. A further need exists for cost effective mechanisms to assist an operator in aligning box blanks for a double box glue and tape machine prior to feeding the blanks into the machine. There is a further need for devices to improve the efficiently of double box glue and tape machines.
The present invention meets the needs described above in a double box glue and tape machine that includes upper and lower seam conveyors with separately positionable gluing conveyors and idler rollers. These independently separable conveyors allow the idler rollers to be moved out of the way so that the upper and lower seam gluing conveyors may be positioned opposite each other for simultaneous gluing of overlapping seams. This feature allows the machine to simultaneously glue overlying seams when manufacturing square double boxes.
Another aspect of the invention includes a semi-automatic alignment and feed system for a double box glue and tape machine. The alignment and feed system includes one or more remotely operable gates for blocking the entrance of a double box blank, consisting of a pair of individual box blanks, into the machine to facilitate alignment of the box blanks prior to feeding them into the machine. The gates are typically operated by a foot pedal located in an operator stand, where the operator can conveniently align the double box blank and then operate the foot pedal to release the gates. A proximity detector typically resets the gates after the box blank clears the input area of the machine. The alignment and feed system may also include additional features to facilitate the alignment and feeding of blanks into the machine, such as outboard rollers to provide lateral support to the box blanks, input guide rollers to direct the box blanks into the seam conveyors, and a seam separator to facilitate separation of the seam around the glue head. The machine may also include a glue flushing system to save time during the clean-up process.
Generally described, the present invention may be embodied in a double box glue and tape machine that includes upper and lower seam conveyors. The upper seam conveyor includes an upper seam gluing conveyor, a lateral positioning system for the upper seam gluing conveyor, an upper seam idler roller, and a lateral positioning system for the upper seam idler roller. Similarly, the lower seam conveyor includes a lower seam gluing conveyor, a lateral positioning system for the lower seam gluing conveyor, a lower seam idler roller, and a lateral positioning system for the lower seam idler roller. This allows the upper seam gluing conveyor to be selectively positioned opposite the upper seam idler roller to glue a first seam, while the lower seam gluing conveyor may be selectively positioned opposite the lower seam idler roller to glue a second seam that is laterally separated from the first seam. Alternatively, the upper seam gluing conveyor may be positioned opposite the lower seam gluing conveyor, with the upper and lower seam idler rollers placed in inoperative positions, to glue first and second seams that are laterally overlapping.
The lateral positioning system for the upper seam gluing conveyor may include a first cross bar having a first rolling surface and rollers supporting the upper seam gluing conveyor carried on the first rolling surface. In addition, the lateral positioning system for the upper seam idler roller may include a second cross bar having a second rolling surface and rollers supporting the upper seam idler roller and carried on the second rolling surface. The lateral positioning system for the lower seam gluing conveyor may include rollers supporting the lower seam gluing conveyor carried on the second rolling surface, while the lateral positioning system for the lower seam idler roller may include rollers supporting the lower seam idler roller and carried on the first rolling surface. That is, the upper seam gluing conveyor and the lower seam idler roller may ride on the first cross bar, while the lower seam gluing conveyor and the upper seam idler roller may ride on the second cross bar. This allows the upper seam gluing conveyor, which is riding on the first cross bar, to be positioned opposite the lower seam gluing conveyor, which is riding on the second cross bar. The double box glue and tape machine may also include a vertical adjustment mechanism operable for adjusting a vertical distance between the first and second cross bars to adjust a nip distance to accommodate box blanks of varying thickness.
The semi-automatic alignment and feed system typically includes one or more remotely operable gates for selectively blocking the entrance of a pair of the box blanks into the seam conveyors and facilitating alignment of the box blanks prior to entry into the seam conveyors. More specifically, the alignment and feed system may include a feed stand for supporting a pair of box blanks adjacent to the input end of the double box glue and tape machine and one or more gates for selectively blocking the entrance of the pair of the box blanks into the input end of the machine and facilitating alignment of the box blanks prior to entry into the machine. The alignment and feed system may also include a release mechanism for remotely releasing the gate to selectively unblock the entrance of the pair of box blanks into the input end of the double box glue and tape machine after alignment.
In particular, the alignment and feed system may include one or more lateral guides supported by the feed gate and configured to cooperate with the gate to facilitate alignment of the box blanks prior to entry into the double box glue and tape machine. In addition, the alignment and feed system may include a box proximity detector, such as an electric eye, configured to reset the gate after the double box blank passes through the input end of the double box glue and tape machine. The release mechanism typically includes a foot pedal carried by an operator stand positioned to facilitate manual alignment and feeding of the box blanks into the double box glue and tape machine.
The alignment and feed system may also include additional features to facilitate the alignment and feeding of blanks into the machine, such as one or more outboard rollers carried by the seam conveyors configured to provide lateral support to the double box blanks passing through the seam conveyors, one or more input guide rollers carried on an input end of the seam conveyor configured to facilitate feeding the double box blanks into the input end of the seam conveyors and a seam separator carried on an input end of the seam conveyors configured to facilitate receipt of a glue head into the seam as the seam passes through the input end of the seam conveyors.
The double box glue and tape machine may also include a cold glue head, a cold glue supply providing cold glue to the cold glue head, a water supply providing water to the cold glue head, and a valve for selectively connecting the cold glue supply and water supply to the cold glue head to facilitate cleaning of the cold glue head.
In a two conveyor system, the double box glue and tape machine typically includes an upper seam conveyor having an upper seam gluing conveyor, a lateral positioning system for the upper seam gluing conveyor, an upper seam idler roller, and a lateral positioning system for the upper seam idler roller. The machine also typically includes a lower seam conveyor having a lower seam gluing conveyor, a lateral positioning system for the lower seam gluing conveyor, a lower seam idler roller, and a lateral positioning system for the lower seam idler roller. The upper seam gluing conveyor may be selectively positioned opposite the upper seam idler roller to glue a first seam, and the lower seam gluing conveyor may be selectively positioned opposite the lower seam idler roller to glue a second seam that is laterally separated from the first seam. Alternatively, the upper seam gluing conveyor may be selectively positioned opposite the lower seam gluing conveyor, with the upper and lower seam idler placed in inoperative positions, to glue first and second seams that are laterally overlapping.
The double box glue and tape machine may also include one or more remotely operable gates for selectively blocking the entrance of a double box blank into the seam conveyor and facilitating alignment of the box blanks prior to entry into the seam conveyor. It may also include one or more outboard rollers carried by the upper seam conveyor configured to provide lateral support to box blanks passing through the upper seam conveyor. Similarly, it may include one or more outboard rollers carried by the lower seam conveyor configured to provide lateral support to box blanks passing through the lower seam conveyor.
The double box glue and tape machine may also include one or more input guide rollers carried on an input end of the upper seam conveyor configured to facilitate feeding box blanks into the input end of the upper seam conveyor. Similarly, it may include one or more input guide rollers carried on an input end of the lower seam conveyor configured to facilitate feeding box blanks into the input end of the lower seam conveyor.
The double box glue and tape machine may also include an upper seam separator carried on an input end of the upper seam conveyor configured to facilitate receipt of an upper glue head into an upper seam as the upper seam passes through the input end of the upper seam conveyor. Similarly, it may include a lower seam separator carried on an input end of the lower seam conveyor configured to facilitate receipt of a lower seam glue head into a lower seam as the lower seam passes through the input end of the lower seam conveyor.
In view of the foregoing, it will be appreciated that the present invention improves on prior double box glue and tape machines by providing separately positionable upper and lower seam gluing conveyors, and a semi-automatic alignment and feed system including remotely operable gates, outboard rollers, guide rollers, and seam separators. The double box glue and tape machine may also include a glue flushing system. The specific techniques and structures employed by the invention to improve over the drawbacks of prior double box glue and tape machines to accomplish the advantages described above will become apparent from the following detailed description of the embodiments of the invention and the appended drawings and claims.